Polar Zones

Polar dinosaurs developed unique features to survive:

• Feathers or fur – Some species had an insulating layer of down or feathers to protect themselves from the cold, like modern birds.
• Large eyes – This helped them hunt and move in the weak winter light.
• Seasonal behavior – Some scientists believe that certain dinosaurs hibernated during the winter or migrated to warmer areas, like many animals today.

• Scientific name : Timimus hermani
• Period : Early Cretaceous
• Dating : – 120 to – 109 M years
• Origin : Australia
• Length :  4 m

Recently discovered and only known from two femurs found in 1991, the exact appearance of this dinosaur is unknown! It has thus been extrapolated based on that of similar species for which more complete skeletons have been found.

• Scientific name : Nanuqsaurus hoglundi
• Period : Late Cretaceous
• Dating : – 70 M years
• Origin : Alaska
• Length :  5 to 6 m

Discovered only in 2006. Once again, we are faced with a dinosaur for which very few remains have been found: in total, a piece of the lower jaw and a part of the top and front of the skull. However, this is enough to identify it as belonging to the tyrannosaur family. Probably covered with a thick layer of down that enabled it to survive in the climate of Alaska.

• Scientific name : Pachyrhinosaurus canadensis
• Period : Late Cretaceous
• Dating : – 70 M yeras
• Origin : Canada
• Length :  6 to 8 m

Under the name Patchi, he is the hero of the animated film ‘Walking with Dinosaurs,’ released in 2013. This dinosaur belongs to the group of ceratopsians, dinosaurs that often have a frill behind their head and horns, with the most famous representative being the Triceratops.

• Scientific name : Edmontosaurus regalis
• Period : Late Cretaceous
• Dating : – 70 to – 68 M years
• Origin : Canada
• Length :  12 m

One of the few dinosaurs for which we have found skin impressions! They lived in herds and were part of the ‘duck-billed dinosaur’ family. It could move both on four legs and on its two hind legs.

• Scientific name : Atlascopcosaurus loadsi
• Period : Early Cretaceous
• Dating : – 123 to – 110 M years
• Origin : Australia
• Length :  2 to 3 m

His name is a reminder that the expedition that discovered him in 1984 was sponsored by the company Atlas Copco. This company specializes in the production of air-powered tools and compressors. In 1984, it financed the equipment for an archaeological dig in the southeast of Australia, at Dinosaur Cove!

• Scientific name : Leaellynasaura amicagraphica
• Period : Early Cretaceous
• Dating : -115 M year
• Origin : Australia
• Length :  1 to 2 m

An unverified hypothesis is that Leaellynasaura might have hibernated in groups in hollow trees, caves, or burrows. Between 200 and 100 million years ago, the location of ‘Dinosaur Cove’ in southern Australia was much closer to the South Pole than it is now.

• Scientific name : Wintonotitan wattsi
• Period : Early Cretaceous
• Dating : -100 to -93 M year
• Origin : Australia
• Length :  15 to 17 m

An Australian sauropod species of relatively small size compared to some others that reached nearly 30 meters in length. It is believed that, due to their abundance, the large herbivorous dinosaurs contributed to a gradual warming of the climate through the methane produced in their flatulence.